Dean de Paula encourages pre-med reform

College of Arts and Sciences Dean Julio de Paula, in an opinion piece in Inside Higher Ed, offers suggestions for reforming pre-med curriculum to emphasize competencies gained through liberal arts education.

This summer, the Association of American Medical Colleges, in collaboration with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, released a report titled “Scientific Foundations for Future Physicians.”

De Paula, who was a member of the committee behind the report, argues that educators should bring together their collective experience to create pre-med curriculum founded on innovative, engaging, and interdisciplinary work.

He writes: “As an educator, dean, and contributor to the report, I believe it is critical that educators, administrators, professional organizations and foundations begin immediately with a close examination and debate of the report’s recommendations, if we are to prepare medical professionals more effectively and inspire students to engage in scientific inquiry.”